Reborn in 1966

Chapter 442 Crisis

The two of them, having gathered their belongings, figured the secretary would be arriving soon, so they waited in front of the department store. Pei Yin, ever cautious, kept glancing around as they walked. Before they even left the department store, they saw the man she had punched earlier hurrying towards them with several police officers. Pei Yin pulled Du Qianqian along and pointed outside. Du Qianqian looked and said, "Let's go over there and see what he's up to. I refuse to believe that a man can be so lewd as to think he's in the right."

Pei Yin felt that she should avoid it if possible. As long as she didn't suffer any losses, she could get her revenge later. Du Qianqian was different. She was considered the top young master of the family. She couldn't swallow the anger of being treated like this today. She was law-abiding and obedient. How could she be bullied like this? Besides, it didn't seem like she started this. It was just fate coming after her. Unable to understand, Du Qianqian decided to confront these scumbags head-on.

Pei Yin didn't think that way. As a graduate student majoring in Chinese literature, she had read all kinds of novels, including many about privileged backgrounds and privileged students. In her eyes, what was most important? Face. For the sake of face, they could do many unbelievable things. Today's incident was because that man had lost face in front of her, and he was here to settle scores. They outnumbered him, and besides, they had the police with them. People still respected police uniforms. If they said that she and Du Qianqian had nothing to do with each other, everyone would probably side with them. If she and Du Qianqian were taken away, she didn't dare to imagine what would happen next. So Pei Yin's intention was to avoid confrontation. It was just about face. Face was worthless in the face of absolute power. Most importantly, Pei Yin felt that she was in the right. No matter what, it was their side that was being unreasonable. If you hadn't come to pull me away, would I have thrown you? If you hadn't come to pull me away, would I have kicked you? I don't even know you. You're a grown man, and you grabbed my arm. It's only right that I resisted. This was legitimate self-defense.

Pei Yin was calculating in her mind, but her sister-in-law didn't think so. In her eyes, the police were the embodiment of justice. Since you brought the police, as long as I explain things clearly, I'll be in the right in the end. So Du Qianqian stood confidently in front of the department store. The man was originally afraid that the two would run away, but when he looked up and saw Du Qianqian standing in front of the door, he immediately laughed and said, "See? This is the one. I told you guys, the girl with her is a tough character. She threw someone down without saying a word. My back is still hurting."

The "fierce girl" the man was talking about was standing inside the door carrying things. There were several counters selling cosmetics on the first floor. There was a cosmetics counter as soon as you entered. The counter was an old-fashioned one. There was a partition right at the entrance. Pei Yin crouched down and crawled under the partition. Through the window, she could see the scene at the entrance.

The man led several policemen over, and the crowd at the door quickly formed a circle. People these days still love to watch the excitement. Wherever there's trouble, they rush over. Even if there's a fight going on here, they'll watch the spectacle first before doing anything else.

The man reached the door and said to Du Qianqian, "Where are your accomplices? Call them out and come with us right now. How dare you attack me in public?"

Du Qianqian knew that Pei Yin was probably hiding when she didn't see her at the door. That was fine; she could deal with things here until the secretary arrived. Du Qianqian noticed the way the man looked at Pei Yin; he probably wanted to attack her because she was pretty. Du Qianqian worked at the hospital and had encountered similar situations before. A girl was pursued because of her looks, but she didn't reciprocate his advances. After repeatedly rejecting him, the man got angry and beat her up. If she hadn't protected her face while being hit, she might have been disfigured. Many people in the hospital knew about this incident, and Du Qianqian had even gone to see it out of curiosity. The hospitalized girl, though indeed very pretty, wasn't as beautiful as Pei Yin. Du Qianqian was quite proud to have taken Pei Yin out; such a beautiful girl was her brother's wife. Today, Pei Yin was being harassed because of her looks. For some reason, Du Qianqian thought of the hospitalized girl and felt very angry. It was because of these self-righteous men that a perfectly good girl was being bullied. So, Du Qianqian felt relieved that Pei Yin hadn't come out with her. She could just explain what happened to the police here. Besides, Pei Yin was young; she didn't want to frighten her.

Hearing what the man said, Du Qianqian frowned and said, "What accomplice? Officers, you've come at the right time. I was just about to come and report that we encountered some thugs today."

Upon hearing this, the man's eyebrows shot up, and he said sternly, "What hooligan? Where is the hooligan? Don't talk nonsense."

Seeing the two talking like that, the police quickly stopped them and said to Du Qianqian, "Comrade, since you have something to report, why don't you come with us to the police station? We can explain things clearly."

Du Qianqian said, "Okay, let me tell you first. My name is Du Qianqian, and I am a doctor at our provincial TCM hospital. I am not some scumbag."

Upon hearing this, the man angrily said, "What kind of scum are you talking about? Let me tell you, my name is Zhou Qiang, and I'm currently studying abroad. Watch your words and don't say whatever comes to mind."

Pei Yin hid to the side, listening to the conversation outside the door. She frowned, afraid that Du Qianqian would go with them. When she heard Zhou Qiang say that he was studying abroad, she found it strange. Studying abroad was not as common as it would be decades later. The admission requirements were very strict, especially considering Zhou Qiang's age. Shouldn't someone in their twenties be in college? Zhou Qiang didn't give off any scholarly air; instead, he had a roguish air about him. Someone like that could call the police if something happened. Either he was the son of some leader, or he was rich and had a good relationship with one of these policemen. In any case, she couldn't let Du Qianqian go with them.

Pei Yin bit her fingernails, anxiously thinking of a solution. Before she could come up with one, a waiter who was watching the commotion by the window pulled her out. The waiter made a loud noise, which Zhou Qiang, who was facing the door, saw immediately. Zhou Qiang excitedly said to the police officers behind him, "See that? That's the one who attacked me, that's her."

Seeing that she could no longer hide, Pei Yin had no choice but to come out with her things, stand next to Du Qianqian, and say to the police, "Hello, police officers!"

Hearing Pei Yin say this, Zhou Qiang said with a gloating look, "Now is not the time to try to get on our good side. Come with us."

Pei Yin asked, "In what capacity do you entrust us with this trip?"

Zhou Qiang said, "You just attacked me. I am the victim. That's my identity."

Pei Yin said, "Why would I lay a hand on you?"

Zhou Qiang said, "I grabbed your arm, and you threw me to the ground." After Zhou Qiang finished speaking, there was a burst of laughter around him. Zhou Qiang's face turned a little ugly. Partly it was because he had been a little too smug, but more importantly, Pei Yin's words were really harmless. He had just said what Pei Yin said. Even the older policeman who came with him shook his head with a smile and said, "Young Master Zhou, I think you should just let it go. Why take someone to the police station for such a small matter?"

Zhou Qiang said, "But she hit me twice."

Pei Yin asked, "Did you suffer any actual harm?"

Upon hearing this, Zhou Qiang shifted his shoulders and said, "Ouch, my back hurts. I must have hurt myself." His shamelessness amused Pei Yin, while Du Qianqian, her face darkening, cursed, "Shameless!"

To everyone's surprise, Zhou Qiang grabbed the police officer and said, "Did you hear that? Did you hear that? She actually called me shameless! Officer, this is an insult to me!"

The older policeman in charge, with an upright demeanor, found Zhou Qiang's behavior utterly shameless. He sighed and said to Zhou Qiang, "Alright, alright, why are you, a grown man, arguing with two women? Let's just let this go."

To everyone's surprise, Zhou Qiang waved his hand and said, "We can't let it go, how can we let it go? Brother Chen, I call you brother, and your younger brother was thrown and kicked, it's really too embarrassing. If I just let it go like this, where will I put my face?"

Officer Chen was taken aback by Zhou Qiang's words, especially in front of so many people. He sighed inwardly. Everyone said Zhou Qiang was a bit reckless, and they weren't lying. He had been on duty at the police station when this guy came to report that he had been beaten up at the department store, making a terrible scene. But when he arrived with his men, it turned out he had been beaten up by a girl, a rather thin and frail-looking young woman. Officer Chen had heard that Zhou Qiang was a womanizer, and he guessed that Zhou Qiang had harassed the girl and gotten beaten up. Thinking that with him there, the girl wouldn't suffer much if she went to the police station with him, he said to Du Qianqian, "Comrade, it's not good for us to be blocking the door here. Why don't you come with us to the police station, and we can clear things up?"

Just as Du Qianqian was about to nod, Pei Yin grabbed her hand and said, "Officer, my family will be here soon. I request that someone from my family accompany us to the police station."

When Pei Yin made this request, Officer Chen thought for a moment and nodded in agreement. So the group went to the roadside to wait for Pei Yin's family to arrive. But as soon as they got to the roadside, they saw Car Number One speeding up like a gust of wind and screeching to a stop right in front of them. Du Kunpeng's secretary, whose hair was usually neatly combed, was now disheveled, with a few strands hanging down her forehead. She got out of the car looking anxious. Seeing Du Qianqian and Pei Yin standing by the roadside, she breathed a sigh of relief and took a couple of deep breaths before coming over and saying, "Oh, you've finally made it. Are you alright?"